Fidelity vs. Musicality...........Is there a tug of War?

Detail is great, precise 3D imaging with huge soundstage, sure why not. These things certainly add to the experience. But the minute you achieved correct timbre of instruments and have very musical system that carries rhythm and makes you engaged. The minute it makes you want to listen to more and more there's no actual need to go any further. As fidelity is concerned you need a certain level of it to achieve the above.

I only care about how something measures, not sounds. ;-)

When you go to a live, unamplified performance, of a small jazz group, or even a symphony orchestra, do you sit there and say to yourself ... "Oh my God! ... listen to that detail?" 

Music first. Fidelity second.

Frank

I want to change my response.

 'Musicality' rests (or should I think) in a listener's reaction to a performance, not to his audio system. I offer two examples, Richters live Sofia performance of Mussorgsky's  'Pictures' and Zlata Chovhieva' performance of Chopin's Etudes. The former is in terrible audio yet the performance is by most any standard great(est?). It is dramatic in a way that most are not and it draws you in. Chochieva's Chopin is a different approach, a more lyrical one and in pretty good 'audio' as well. It's a more relaxed experience, one that I like in this music. If I had the best audio system I could not enjoy these performances more!

I could easily improve my audio system, lots of room to grow. But would I like these recording more, I don't think so.

FWIW